This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
We have three Premier League weekends left in this season and things are tightening up in both the race against relegation and for the European spots on the table. We are going to see managers try different things depending on where their team currently sits in hopes of making a strong end-of-season run.
MATCHES (ET)
- 10:00 am: Aston Villa vs. Tottenham Hotspur
- 10:00 am: Chelsea vs. Nottingham Forest
- 10:00 am: Crystal Palace vs. AFC Bournemouth
- 10:00 am: Manchester United vs. Wolverhampton
- 10:00 am: Southampton vs. Fulham
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS
Bruno Fernandes, MU vs WOL ($22): Man United are the biggest favorites on the slate and this is a home game that they must show up for if they want to inch closer to a top-four Champions League spot. Bruno has shown a massive floor as of late and while he is pricey, he is the safest play on the slate. He hasn't been under 10 fantasy points since March 5th against Liverpool. The rest of Man United are tough with Anthony Martial ($18) and Jadon Sancho ($17) not having much of a floor. Antony ($18) would actually be my preferred second piece as he has a solid floor but just hasn't shown the upside you need for tournaments recently.
Harry Kane ($23) has been incredibly consistent lately, but you may have to choose between him and Bruno Fernandes on this slate due to pricing. The matchup with Aston Villa isn't the best, and Tottenham are underdogs, but this is a Villa side that is coming off of two straight losses when they had a chance to push for at least a Europa spot on the table. Now, at best, they could get a Conference League spot, but how motivated will they actually be?
Conor Gallagher, CHE vs NFO ($16): Chelsea is a hard team to predict and now that they are safe from relegation what do they really have to play for? I do however have interest in a couple of pieces that may feel that they have something to prove in Conor Gallagher and Mykhailo Mudryk ($15). Both young talented players, Mudryk has taken a strong role on set pieces as of late and projects to do the same in this lineup on Saturday. Gallagher has shown nice open-play value recently and, when given the minutes, has produced for this team. I think both are in play in the mid-range with their current roles for the second biggest favorites on the slate.
Michael Olise, CRY vs BOU ($17): An interesting team for GPPs is Crystal Palace who take on Bournemouth at home. They are the third biggest favorites on the slate and although there isn't a lot to play for this team, the other side Bournemouth have done almost enough to protect themselves from relegation in their last three and may see a drop in motivation on the road as well. Olise is splitting set pieces with Eberechi Eze ($18) who is also interesting, while Wilfried Zaha ($17) is the team's most likely goal scorer. If you need salary savings, you could take a shot on Jordan Ayew ($14) who is goal dependent, but has upside.
Other salary-saving options include pieces in the Fulham vs Southampton game that seems like it will see goals. Carlos Alcaraz ($15) and Kamaldeen Sulemana ($12) make for GPP options on the Southampton side, while Tom Cairney ($12) and Harry Wilson ($16) appeal for Fulham. Pedro Neto ($12) has returned for Wolves and while the matchup isn't good, he has shown a decent floor lately for a cheap price tag.
DEFENDERS
Pedro Porro, TOT vs AVL ($15): The safest floor with upside on the slate at defender is clearly Porro who has taken more and more of a role on set pieces for this team in recent games. I think with the rest of the position being fairly weak, we just find the salary for Porro and work from there. Luke Shaw ($12) has moved to a center-back role but still has a slight share of sets with Bruno Fernandes. He has shown a decent floor in that role recently but has lost some upside.
Max Kilman, WOL vs MU ($11): Here we are for the weekly defensive center back plays and it starts with the Wolves duo of Max Kilman and Craig Dawson ($10). I like the matchup with Man United for them and expect them to be under attack often. Marcos Senesi ($11) and Lloyd Kelly ($10) are regulars in this section with Bournemouth consistently being a team that cedes possession. Lastly, Joe Worrall ($9) and Moussa Niakhate ($10) are appealing against Chelsea on the road.
GOALKEEPER
David de Gea, MU vs WOL ($14): This is a big game for Man United and I think we see full effort here. They are a tough team to play for a clean sheet as they've only kept two in their last seven games, but this is a strong matchup and if you have the salary I see no problems. The pivots up top don't make a lot of appeal either with Kepa Arizabalaga ($13) and Chelsea being inconsistent. Sam Johnstone ($12) is a bit more interesting to me but still is clearly behind the Man United keeper. If you need cheap options, Emiliano Martinez ($10) is a favorite and priced lower than his opponent, while Keylor Navas ($8) would be that same play against Chelsea that we have talked about for weeks.
